Kat Cendana – Page 7 – Amazing Bible Timeline with World History

Posted on December 23, 2017November 25, 2018 by Kat Cendana — Leave a comment

Surrender of Quebec 1759

On September 13, 1759, British and French troops met and fought on the Plains of Abraham in Quebec. This battle was the culmination of years of fighting between the British and French (along with their Native American allies) in a conflict known as the French and Indian War. British forces defeated the French defenders of the city in a short battle and proceeded to seize Quebec in the following days. At the end of the French and Indian War, France was forced to cede Quebec (along with other North American colonies) to Britain. These events are recorded on the Biblical Timeline Chart with World History during this time period.

The Europeans Arrive in Quebec

The first known inhabitants of southern Quebec were Algonquian- and Iroquoian-speaking First Nations tribes. The northern part of Quebec had long been home to Canada’s aboriginal Inuit. In 1534, King Francis I of France commissioned Jacques Cartier on a voyage to find gold in the New World and the fabled Northwest Passage to Asia. Cartier and his crew arrived near the Gaspe Peninsula in May 1534 but failed to find treasures or trade routes to Asia that was not blocked by land or ice. They sailed back to France, but Cartier returned the following year. This time, Cartier and his crew entered the St. Lawrence and sailed upriver until they came across a Huron village called Hochelaga. This area later became the city of Montreal.

Cartier claimed the area for France and named the colony “New France.” With the help of friendly natives tribes, the French traders were able to transform the area into a center for the fur trade. The French people did not immediately seize the opportunity to migrate to Canada because of the difficulty of the voyage and the struggle of pioneers in a foreign land. Wars back home also hampered possible French migrants from settling New France in greater numbers.

In 1603, the French explorer Samuel de Champlain traveled to New France in another attempt to find the Northwest Passage. He never found the passage but went on to explore the St. Lawrence River and establish a trading post on Stadacona near modern Quebec City. The colony of Quebec finally grew when a greater number of settlers migrated from France. The French kings granted the vast lands of Quebec to companies whose directors then divided and distributed to influential Frenchmen. These lands were then leased to and cultivated by French farmers. Apart from hardy fur traders and frontiersmen, intrepid Catholic priests and missionaries started to gain a foothold in the area.

Expansion and Conflict

Between the late 1600s and early 1700s, French explorers had established riverine outposts in Illinois, Indiana, and eventually, Ohio. Unlike their British counterparts, the relationship between the French and most of the Native American tribes they encountered was initially cordial. The French settlers made an alliance with tribes such as the Piankashaw, Shawnee, Ojibwe, Potawatomi, Chippewa, and Ottawa. As the settlers expanded in Ohio, they made alliances with peoples such as the Delaware, Shawnee, Mississauga, and Wyandot. The British colonists, on the other hand, acquired an alliance with the Iroquois Confederacy, Cherokee, and Chickasaw. These tribes would go on to play a large role in the French and Indian War and influence its outcome.

While New France’s total European population stayed below 50,000, the population of Britain’s North American colonies had grown to more than 250,000. Their situation was also precarious as rival colonies in the American northeast hemmed them in. By the 1730s, Canadian settlers traveling further south and southeast inevitably came across British colonists who, in turn, were expanding north and west. Friction soon arose between the colonists who were scrambling to get their hands on lands and resources.

In the 1740s, the fur trader William Trent established several trade outposts in the Ohio Country. In 1752, French forces (with their First Nations allies) raided and destroyed a British outpost in Pickawillany and killed the Miami chieftain Memeskia as punishment for trading with British merchants. Eager to protect the area from rival traders, the French authorities ordered the construction of Fort Presque Isle, Fort Le Boeuf, Fort Machault, and Fort Duquesne. As they went along, they displaced or captured British traders and their Iroquois allies. Iroquois representatives appealed to the governor of New York for help, but their pleas were in vain.

The French and Indian War: The Long Road to Quebec

Watercolor painting of General Montcalm leading his troops into battle.

News of the French expansion in the Ohio Country reached governor Robert Dinwiddie of Virginia in 1753. Later that year, he dispatched a contingent of the Virginia militia under the young George Washington to demand the withdrawal of the French forces from the Ohio Country. Washington and his forces arrived in Fort Le Boeuf in October 1753 and relayed Dinwiddie’s demands to the French commander Jacques Legardeur de Saint-Pierre. The French commander ignored the governor’s demand. Washington and his men left Fort Le Boeuf and returned to Virginia two months later.

The hostilities between the French and British colonists escalated into full-scale war in 1754. George Washington and his troops managed to ambush and defeat a French reconnaissance party in the southwestern portion of present-day Pennsylvania. The Virginia militia and their French prisoners then retreated to Great Meadows where they constructed Fort Necessity. This victory was quickly reversed when French troops attacked and captured the fort on July 3, 1754.

Meanwhile, the British Parliament finally decided to provide reinforcements for the Virginia militia. In summer of 1755, the British navy and army chipped away at French defenses in the Atlantic by capturing the Acadian peninsula. General Edward Braddock and his men tried to capture Fort Duquesne but were defeated by French soldiers in the disastrous Battle of Monongahela. The British forces reversed this by defeating the French in the Battle of Lake George on September 8, 1755.

Between May 8 and 9, 1756, Britain and France finally declared war on each other. Meanwhile, in America, the formidable French General Montcalm scored victories when he led his troops in capturing Fort Oswego (August 14, 1756), Fort William Henry (August 8, 1757), and Fort Ticonderoga (July 8, 1758). The siege on Fort William Henry became infamous for its brutality and the inability of the French troops to stop its Native American allies from massacring British and local soldiers (as well as civilians) who had already surrendered.

The tides of war turned against the French colonists less than one month after the capture of Fort Ticonderoga. British forces managed to capture Louisbourg on July 26, 1758. The capture of this crucial fortress on the eastern tip of Cape Breton Island made Quebec more vulnerable to an invasion from the north. This defeat was followed by the capture of Fort Frontenac and Fort Duquesne. The seizure of these forts cut off any communication between the troops stationed in the Great Lakes area and the authorities in the cities of Quebec.

The heartbreaking losses of the French colonists continued in 1759. British forces captured French supply ships and seized trade goods, resulting in food shortages in the French colonies and endangering the French-Indian alliance. In summer of the same year, British troops sealed the western frontier by capturing Fort Niagara and Crown Point. British troops and their allies now controlled the area between the Atlantic and the St. Lawrence River. It was not long before the British forces attempted to capture Quebec itself.

In summer of 1759, the British troops under Major General James Wolfe led a grinding 2-month bombardment of Quebec. On the French side, General Montcalm led the successful defense of the city. Finally, on September 13, British forces successfully landed on Quebec’s Anse-au-Foulon. They marched north until they reached the Plains of Abraham where they were met by the beleaguered French forces under General Montcalm. On the same day, the British army defeated the French forces at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham. Although they managed to rout the French troops, the British army was unable to occupy Quebec on that day. General Montcalm and General Wolfe both died within hours of each other on September 14. It was not until September 18, 1759, that Quebec was finally forced to surrender and open its gates to the victorious British troops.

In 1763, the guns of the Seven Years’ War/French and Indian War were finally silenced. In the end, France was forced to cede Canada to the British in the Treaty of Paris. In return, Britain would allow the inhabitants of Canada the freedom to practice Catholicism. The British representatives agreed to the condition that the new rulers would not drive the French settlers from their lands if they chose to remain in the colony. Residents who did not want to submit to British rule would be allowed to sell their lands and leave Canada within an 18-month period.

References:

Picture by: Charles William Jefferys – collectionscanada.ca via the English-language Wikipedia., Public Domain, Link

McNaught, Kenneth William Kirkpatrick. The Penguin History of Canada. London: Penguin, 1978.

Morton, Desmond. A Short History of Canada. 2nd ed. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 1994.

Riendeau, Roger. A Brief History of Canada. New York: Facts On File, 2000.

Posted on December 23, 2017October 27, 2018 by Kat Cendana — Leave a comment

Stamp Act 1765

On March 22, 1765, the British Parliament passed a law called the Stamp Act. This law required the North American colonists to pay for every printed document that they used. The Stamp Act (as well as the Sugar Act and Currency Act that came before it) was an attempt by the British Parliament to replenish its drained treasury after the costly Seven Years’ War/French and Indian War. The tax, however, was unpopular among the colonists and caused considerable unrest in the British colonies. These events are recorded on the Biblical Timeline Poster with World History during that time.

Debt and Taxes: The Financial Realities of the French and Indian War

The Seven Years’ War between Britain and France (along with its North American theater, the French and Indian War) finally ended in 1763. Britain not only gained Canada, but also the land between Quebec and Florida which was bounded by the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River. British troops and colonists soon moved west and built outposts in the area. This land, however, had long been home to Native Americans. The desire of one group of people to claim an area already inhabited by another once again brought armed conflict on both sides.

Pontiac, leader of the Ottawa and a confederation of allied tribes, led his warriors in attacking British garrisons and settlements in the occupied area. Anxious to avoid more hostilities with the Native Americans, Britain forbade white colonists from settling in the area between the Appalachian and the Mississippi through the Royal Proclamation of 1763. As expected, the Royal Proclamation angered the colonists. They felt that they had been robbed of their reward in their participation in the wars and that their participation had been for nothing.

Their feelings of discontent intensified when the British Parliament passed the Sugar Act in April 1764. The British government had incurred debts during the French and Indian War. It was also forced to pay for the defense of the colonies to protect its gains after the war. The most urgent question for the British government at that time was where should it get money to pay off these debts and expenses.

The British government wanted to tap into the revenues from the colonial trade but was deterred by the rampant smuggling of goods (especially the smuggling of molasses used in making rum) and bribery in the Customs. To curb smuggling and bribery (as well as motivate merchants to pay taxes), the British Prime Minister George Grenville proposed to halve the tax imposed on imported molasses from six pence to three pence per gallon. Parliament allowed a number of goods from France, Spain, and their colonies to be imported into the North American colonies. Higher customs duties, however, were imposed on these imported goods.

British authorities started to crack down on lax or corrupt customs deputies to ensure better collection of duties. They also required merchants operating in the colonies to post bonds to ensure that they would follow the new rules. Smugglers would be tried in the vice admiral’s court in distant Nova Scotia and were required to pay for their own travel expenses. In addition, they were to be tried by judges who would receive incentives whenever they hand out guilty verdicts. Grenville also discouraged colonial trade by prohibiting the American colonies from minting or printing their own currencies (the Currency Act).

These measures were met by the colonial population with an explosion of protests in affected colonies. The taxes, they complained, had been passed without their knowledge and consent since they did not have a representative in the British Parliament. For the colonial population, the Sugar Act and Currency Act was nothing more than a way to control them.

The Stamp Act 1765

A printed copy of the Stamp Act of 1765.

Despite the unpopularity of the Sugar Act and the Currency Act, Grenville proposed an additional tax to be imposed on the colonists. This new law was the Stamp Act, and it was passed in the British Parliament on March 22, 1765. In the Stamp Act, all printed documents in the colonies–such as contracts, wills, bills of sale, bills of lading, and the like–should be taxed from anywhere between three pence and four pounds sterling (gold and silver coins, not paper currency). Pamphlets, playing cards, broadsides, newspapers, and others were also taxed. The documents would then be stamped by government agents as proof of payment.

News of the passage of the Stamp Act soon reached the colonies. Before the law could take effect later that year, however, the colonists–particularly those whose profession made frequent use of paper–were already vocal in their opposition to the Act. Some of the most fervent opposition came from a radical organization called the Sons of Liberty who made “No Taxation without Representation” their motto.

Mobs began attacking stamp agents in the colonies, forcing most of them to resign from their posts. The Americans also threatened to boycott British goods if the Parliament insisted on enforcing the Act. Benjamin Franklin himself traveled to London to protest in the British Parliament. Representatives of all colonies except Georgia, North Carolina, New Hampshire, and Virginia also petitioned King George III to scrap the tax act before it could be implemented. He passed the petition to the Parliament for review.

The king was already dissatisfied with Grenville, so he was dismissed in July 1765. He was replaced by the Marquis of Rockingham whose administration decided to repeal the deeply unpopular Stamp Act on March 18, 1766. The repeal came only when British merchants expressed their concerns for the boycott of their goods in the colonies. Britain tried to save face by issuing the Declaratory Act (which asserted the Crown’s sovereignty in the British colonies) and the Revenue Act (which sought to discourage smuggling and bribery by reducing the tax on molasses to a penny per gallon).

References:

Picture by: British Parliment 1765 – Library of Congress, Gwillhickers, Public Domain, Link

Allison, R. J. The American Revolution: A Concise History. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011.

Fleming, Thomas. Liberty!: The American Revolution. New York: Penguin, 1997.

Raphael, Ray. The First American Revolution: Before Lexington and Concord. New York: New Press, 2002

Schmittroth, Linda. American Revolution. Detroit: U.X.L., 2000.

Continue reading Stamp Act 1765

Posted on December 23, 2017October 6, 2018 by Kat Cendana — Leave a comment

Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) 1652

The Religious Society of Friends (or Quakers) was founded in 1652 by the English religious leader George Fox. The Friends were considered early on as a radical organization by the government and other religious organizations, resulting in the persecution, imprisonment, and death of many of their members. Despite the persecution they suffered, Quaker membership in Britain grew as the years passed and even expanded into North America. These events are recorded on the Bible Timeline with World History during this time period.

Origin

George Fox, the man who founded the Religious Society of Friends, was born in 1624 in the village of Fenny Drayton, Leicestershire. He was the son of the churchwarden and relatively prosperous weaver, Christopher Fox, by his wife Mary. His parents were known in the village as pious and upright Puritans. They made sure that George could read and write, but was not able to send him to England’s prestigious universities. Young George worked as a cobbler and raised livestock under the supervision of a man called George Gee.

George attended church at a young age. He became very religious, but what made him different from other children his age was his ability to detect the inconsistencies between what the churchgoers did on Sundays and what they did during the weekdays. He began to read and study the Bible earnestly. His work as a caretaker of livestock often gave him time to be alone and indulge in introspection.

George became disenchanted with the superficial piety shown by some Puritans as he grew older. At the age of 19 and in the midst of the English Civil War, he decided to leave his village and do some soul-searching. He traveled all over England and talked to clergymen of various sects along the way. The hypocrisy he witnessed among the clerics and churchgoers only led to his disillusionment with the organized religion. He also witnessed the brutalities of the English Civil War–leading him to adopt pacifism later on. But this wandering and seeking soon took its toll on his mind and body.

He finally had a spiritual breakthrough in 1647. He had been completely disillusioned with the ministers he interacted with because what they sometimes taught were not even biblical. He realized that he could be guided instead by God’s “Divine Spirit,” and that spiritual revelations would come as long as he continued to open his heart to Christ. He began preaching in marketplaces, fairs, jails, courts, and churches, and it was not long before he gained his first converts. In the next five years, George Fox continued his journey and his preaching. He sometimes ran afoul of local churches when he started disrupting their services. As a result, the authorities had him arrested and jailed.

The Establishment of the Religious Society of Friends or Quakers

George Fox was the founder of the Religious Society of Friends.

The Religious Society of Friends was formally established in spring of 1652. George Fox had been visiting Lancashire and Westmorland and decided one day to visit Pendle Hill (famous among the locals as a witches’ haunt). He then had a vision of “the Lord let me see in what places he had a great people to be gathered.” He continued to preach and gain converts, especially among the Protestant group called the Seekers. As his followers increased, he became less introspective and more charismatic.

The first Quakers were known by different names. “Children of Light,” “The Camp of the Lord,” “Primitive Christianity Revived,” “Publishers of Truth,” and “Friends of Jesus” were some of the names the members called their group. Later on, they came to be known simply as “Friends” based on Jesus’s teaching in John 15:14. The pejorative label “Quaker” originated from George Fox’s confrontation with a Derby judge. During a hearing, Fox admonished the judge by quoting Isaiah 66:2 (“he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word”). The judge responded by saying, “You are the quaker, not I!”

George Fox believed in the doctrine of the “Inner Light” in which he believed that there is “that of God in every man.” The Friends believed that God’s wisdom is easily accessible to man. Man can communicate to God by re-establishing the link between him and God through Jesus Christ. Their belief in the “Inner Light” was often misunderstood by outsiders and often led to their arrest.

The beliefs of the Religious Society of Friends were radical for their time. Fox did not believe that only men who went to England’s premier universities made good ministers. They did not swear oaths, citing James 5:12 as the basis for their beliefs. Quaker weddings were solemn and simple affairs with no officiating minister. The Friends rejected the idea of tithes and did not believe in the usual corporate worship. Quakers worshiped in silence most of the time and spoke only when led by the Holy Spirit.

The Friends got into trouble with the authorities when they began disrupting church services and country fairs by proclaiming condemnation on the attendees. Fox also adopted the belief in pacifism and rejected a chance to serve in Cromwell’s army after he was released from jail. He was thrown in jail after this rejection.

The Religious Society of Friends gained more converts after Fox sent the “Valiant Sixty” to preach all over England, Scotland, and Ireland (they were, however, made up of almost 70 men and women). Despite their growth in numbers, they were not spared from persecution in an intolerant England. Thousands of Friends were imprisoned during its first 40 years. Hundreds of Friends suffered tongue borings (accomplished with the use of a hot iron), whippings, and brandings. Some, however, died in squalid English jails before they could be freed.

The Friends were given a reprieve when King Charles II freed 700 Quakers in 1660. But their relief was short-lived. In 1664, the Parliament issued the Conventicle Act which made the assembly of five or more people illegal if it did not conform to the Church of England’s Book of Common Prayer. Many Quakers chose to hold their meetings in secret, while others brought food to disguise their assembly. Those who were caught were imprisoned, but the persecution did not stop the Quakers. Two years before Fox’s death in 1691, the Friends finally were able to breathe a sigh of relief when the Parliament passed the Act of Toleration.

Fox made several voyages to the British colonies in the West Indies and North America during his lifetime. He helped Quakers in the colonies organize their church, as well as preached to colonists who followed other forms of Christianity. He also initiated the Friends’ monthly, quarterly, and yearly meetings.

What made the Friends different was the group’s belief that women could and should occupy a prominent role in the church and in society. The Friends allowed women to be ministers and heads of charitable activities. Consistent with Fox’s belief that there is “that of God in every man,” they also included men and women from all races and all segments of society. Apart from North America, the Friends soon gained converts in Germany and the Low Countries.

References:

Picture by: user Magnus Manske on en.wikipedia – Originally from en.wikipedia; description page is (was) here14:44, 19 March 2004 Magnus Manske 187×218 (9,620 bytes) (In the [[:en:public domain]] by age), Public Domain, Link

Bacon, Margaret Hope. The Quiet Rebels: The Story of the Quakers in America. Philadelphia, PA: New Society Publishers, 1985.

Holder, Charles Frederick. The Quakers in Great Britain and America: The Religious and Political History of the Society of Friends from the Seventeenth to the Twentieth Century. The Neuner Company, 1913.

Douglas J.D. and Petty, P.W. The New International Dictionary of the Christian Church. Edited by J. D. Douglas and Earle E. Cairns. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996.

“350 years of a unique witness: Quaker timeline | Christian History Magazine.” Christian History Institute. Accessed December 22, 2017. https://christianhistoryinstitute.org/magazine/article/350-years-of-a-unique-witness-quaker-timeline.

Posted on December 23, 2017October 28, 2019 by Kat Cendana — 2 Comments

First Continental Congress 1774

The First Continental Congress was held between September 5th and October 26th, 1774, in response to the Coercive Acts (Intolerable Acts) imposed by the British Parliament. Delegates from twelve colonies (with the exception of Georgia) traveled to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and attended the Congress held in Carpenters’ Hall. After nearly two months of deliberation, the delegates issued a unified Declaration of Colonial Rights and Grievances. They also agreed to condemn the Coercive Acts and boycott British goods. These events are recorded on the Bible Timeline Online with World History during that time.

The Boston Tea Party and the Coercive (Intolerable) Acts

In 1766, the British Parliament finally repealed the Stamp Act. It was replaced by the Townshend Acts in the following year which levied taxes on goods such as paint, lead, paper, glass, and tea. To the Parliament’s dismay, the Townshend Acts proved just as unpopular. The colonists responded by boycotting British goods. Riots also engulfed Boston during that time. The authorities tried to suppress the riots by sending additional British troops to Boston in 1768. It seemed like a good idea at first, but the presence of troops only intensified Bostonian resentment.

The unrest in Boston was fueled by colonial propagandists (such as Samuel Adams) and continued as the years passed. The hostilities soon came to a head on March 5, 1770, when a mob of Bostonians attacked the British soldiers assigned to guard the Customs House. Five people died in the clash that ensued, causing even more anger and resentment. In April 1770, the British Parliament led by Lord North abolished all the taxes under the Townshend Acts with the exception of the duties imposed on tea. Despite this concession, relations between Britain and the colonists remained strained.

The Tea Act, the Boston Tea Party, and its Implications

In May 1773, the British Parliament passed the Tea Act. This law granted a loan of 1,500,000 pounds to East India Company and the exclusive right to sell tea in the colonies. In exchange, the East India Company would relinquish the responsibility of appointing their governors to the Parliament. Shipments of tea would not pass through Britain but would go straight to the colonies where the merchandise would eventually be taxed. The Parliament’s goals were to save the finances of the East India Company, as well as lower the taxes on tea in America. For the Americans, however, the Tea Act was just the Crown’s way to control the colonies’ trade.

Protests greeted the arrival of ships loaded with British goods including tea. Some protesters prevented the vessels from docking on several ports of the colonies. Members of the Sons of Liberty prevented workers from unloading the merchandise from the ships. Things came to a head on the night of December 16, 1773, when a group of Bostonians–disguised as Native Americans–boarded the ships docked on the port of the town. They took 350 crates of tea from the hold of the ship, hoisted them on deck, and threw the crates into the sea. The shipment was valued at almost 10,000 pounds. News of this protest (later called the Boston Tea Party) spread to other colonies and served as a warning for ship owners to avoid American ports in the meantime.

The British Parliament responded to the Boston Tea Party by introducing the punitive Coercive Acts. The colonists, however, called these laws the “Intolerable Acts.” These Acts included the following:

Boston Port Act – stipulated that unless the Bostonians pay for the damages which resulted from the Boston Tea Party, their ports would remain closed for operations.

Massachusetts Government Act – this law overhauled the colony’s charter and granted authority to a governor appointed by Parliament. Election of Massachusetts officials was suspended and the right to appoint them was reserved to the governor.

Administration of Justice Act – stipulated that any government official violating any law in the colonies should be sent to London or to other colonies for trial. Bostonians called it the “Murder Act.”

Quartering Act – decreed that British troops should be quartered or housed in the homes of private citizens.

The British Parliament also passed the Quebec Act to punish the colonists further.

Quebec Act – Parliament allowed the formation of government in Quebec more than a decade after the British took the province from the French. The Act also extended the southern border of Quebec to the Ohio River and as far west as the Mississippi River. This law angered the colonists who claimed the area.

The First Continental Congress 1774

The First Continental Congress agreed to condemn the Coercive Acts and boycott British goods.

King George III and the British Parliament issued the Coercive Acts in hopes that it would isolate Massachusetts into submission. The laws, however, accomplished the opposite. In sympathy, the residents of South Carolina and Virginia sent grain and other foodstuffs north. The people of Connecticut also saved the colony from hunger by sending sheep.

The British authorities hoped that the other colonies would fall in line after issuing the punishment to Massachusetts, but it did not go as they hoped. The Massachusetts legislature sent a circular to other colonies asking them to send delegates for the First Continental Congress. New York agreed to hold a Congress so the colonies could organize a unified boycott, as well as formulate a response to the punitive laws meted out to Massachusetts.

George Washington and the burgesses of Virginia declared June 1 (the day on which the Coercive Acts would take effect) as a day of fasting and prayer as a way to show their solidarity with Massachusetts. Virginia’s governor later dissolved the assembly, but this did not stop the burgesses from planning a Continental Congress. On August 1, 1774, the Virginia House of Burgesses decided to send several delegates (including George Washington) to the First Continental Congress.

The First Continental Congress was held on the 5th of September, 1744 in the Carpenters’ Hall in Philadelphia. Among the colonies, Georgia alone did not send delegates because it relied on British help in fighting its border wars with the Native Americans. The delegates themselves were divided between the more radical representatives who pushed for complete independence from Britain and the moderates wanted to remain with the motherland but wanted to defend their rights as British citizens. John Jay, John Adams, and George Washington were among the prominent men who attended the Congress.

After more than a month of debates, the First Continental Congress finally issued its Declaration of Colonial Rights and Grievances. In the Declaration, the colonists issued a defiance of the Parliament’s power to impose taxes on the colonies without representation. The delegates also condemned the Administration of Justice Act and the Massachusetts Government Act. They chose Peyton Randolph as the president of the First Continental Congress.

The Declaration included a list of the colonists’ grievances against the British Parliament, as well as the laws it had passed since the end of the French and Indian War. The delegates stated their intention to form a Continental Association, as well as boycott British goods after December 1774. They agreed to ban the export of American goods to Britain in the fall of 1775. The delay would give enough time for the Virginia planters to sell their tobacco before the deadline on September 10, 1775. The delegates agreed to hold the Second Continental Congress in May of the following year.

References:

Picture by: USCapitol – The First Continental Congress, 1774, Public Domain, Link

Allison, R. J. The American Revolution: A Concise History. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011.

Fleming, Thomas. Liberty!: The American Revolution. New York: Penguin, 1997.

Raphael, Ray. The First American Revolution: Before Lexington and Concord. New York: New Press, 2002

Schmittroth, Linda. American Revolution. Detroit: U.X.L., 2000.

Posted on December 22, 2017October 27, 2017 by Kat Cendana — Leave a comment

Antipope Alexander V

The Antipope Alexander V was elected in the city of Pisa in 1409 during the height of the Great Western Schism (1378-1417). Because of his election, Alexander V became the third pope after the ones in Avignon and in Rome. His election, however, was not recognized by the Avignon and Roman popes. After ruling for ten months, Alexander V died in the city of Bologna in 1410. He was later considered as an antipope by the Roman Catholic Church. These events are recorded on the Biblical Timeline with World History during that time.

Early Life

The young Pietro Philarghi (or Peter of Candia) was born in 1339 in the island of Crete. He was said to be an orphan and he begged on the streets before he was taken in by Franciscan friars. He later became a monk in a Franciscan monastery. He was sent to Padua in Italy to study, and continued his education at Oxford and in Paris. He became a prominent scholar and professor during the Great Western Schism (1378-1417).

Pietro also taught the sons of the Lord of Milan, Giovanni Galeazzo Visconti. He was promoted several times as a bishop of Piacenza (1386), Vicenza (1387), and Novara (1389). He received the dioceses because of his close association with the House of Visconti. In 1402, Pope Gregory XII appointed him as the Archbishop of Milan. He became a cardinal and papal legate to Lombardy in 1405.

The Council of Pisa and the Third Pope

Alexander V was born as Pietro Philarghi in 1339.

Cardinal Pietro Philarghi was one of the leading cardinals who pushed for a council to end the Great Western Schism. He encouraged the cardinals of Avignon and Rome to set aside their loyalties to their popes so that they could assemble a council. Pope Gregory XII became angry with Cardinal Philarghi because of this initiative and removed him as an archbishop.

The council summoned by Cardinal Philarghi pushed through in spite of the pope’s anger. The cardinals gathered in the city of Pisa on March 25, 1409, and they condemned the schism that went on from 1378. They also declared the Avignon pope Benedict XIII and the Roman pope Gregory XIII as schismatics and heretics. They announced the deposition of the two popes and elected Cardinal Philarghi as the new pope in 1409. He took the name Alexander V soon after.

Death

The Avignon and Roman popes rejected the election of the Pisan pope. Alexander V ruled for ten months until he was imprisoned in Bologna by Cardinal Cossa (the future John XXIII). His supporters suspected that Alexander was poisoned after he died in the city in 1410. He was buried in the Basilica of San Francesco in Bologna. A new pope who took the name John XXIII was elected in Pisa in the same year.

References:

Picture by: Unknown – http://www.araldicavaticana.com/pantalessandro5.htm, Public Domain, Link

Izbicki, Thomas M., and Joelle Rollo-Koster. Companion to the Great Western Schism (1378-1417) (Brill’s Companions to the Christian Tradition, v. 17). Brill Academic Publishers, 2009.

Locke, Clinton. The Age of the Great Western Schism. New York: Christian Literature Co., 1896.

O’Malley, John W. A History of the Popes: From Peter to the Present. Lanham, MD: Sheed & Ward, 2010.

Peterson, John Bertram. “Alexander V.” The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 18 Jan. 2017 <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01288a.htm>.

Posted on December 21, 2017May 24, 2018 by Kat Cendana — Leave a comment

Napoleon Annexed the Papal States 1809

Napoleon and Pope Pius VII showed a willingness to compromise early in their reigns, but all warmth between the two rulers eventually faded when the French ruler’s authoritarian streak got in the way of peace. The pope’s hopes for a lasting peace with France ended when Napoleon annexed the Papal States in 1809. These events are recorded on the Biblical Timeline with World History during that time.

France and the Papal States: The Rule of the Practical Men

Napoleon Bonaparte finally overthrew the Directory in a coup d’etat on November 10, 1799. He replaced it with a Consulate and declared himself France’s supreme ruler or First Consul. Emmanuel Joseph Sieyes and Roger Ducos became Napoleon’s provisional second and third consuls.

The imprisoned Pope Pius VI died more than two months before Napoleon became France’s First Consul. With the protection of the Habsburgs, the College of Cardinals held a conclave in Venice to elect a new pope. On March 14, 1800, the College elected a Benedictine cardinal named Barnaba Chiaramonti as the new pope. He took the name Pius VII in honor of his predecessor.

After his coronation, Pope Pius VII sailed for Rome aboard a barely serviceable Austrian ship. In spite of the misgivings of some of his advisers, he soon sent an emissary to France to negotiate a conciliation with Napoleon. The First Consul readily agreed to the pope’s overtures although he did not hold the Church in high esteem. His first motivation was to bring the refractory priests back into the fold and gain their support for his rule. He also wanted the Church to renounce its claims on confiscated lands, as well as assure the people who bought them that the properties would remain in their hands.

After a series of negotiations, Napoleon and Pope Pius VII finally reached a Concordat in 1801. The Roman Catholic Church was reinstated in France and was recognized by the Consulate as the religion of the majority of the French people. In exchange, however, the Church would allow the state to nominate bishops. Once approved by the pope, the bishops were then required to swear allegiance to the government and to obey the state’s laws. The pope also agreed to recognize the claims of the buyers of lands confiscated from the Church. Napoleon agreed to recognize the Papal States but refused to return the territories of Romagna, Bologna, and Ferrara.

Napoleon was an authoritarian at heart, so he amended the Concordat without the pope’s knowledge. The First Consul added the Organic Articles and implemented the amended Concordat in 1802. With these amendments, the Catholic Church in France came under the total control of the state. All letters, decrees, and representatives had to receive the Consul’s approval before they became valid. The pope was outraged, but there was nothing he could do to reverse this.

Napoleon proclaimed himself the emperor of France in 1804. Although he had the support of the Senate and the public, he still sought the legitimacy that only Pope Pius VII could give. The pope had has misgivings, but he agreed to set them aside and allowed himself to be convinced to come to Napoleon’s coronation in Paris.

French emissaries assured the pope that he would anoint and crown the new emperor, but things did not go according to plan once they were in the Notre Dame on December 4, 1804. In a symbolic rejection of the pope’s authority, Napoleon took the crown from Pius’s hands, turned his back upon the pope to face the crowd, and proceeded to crown himself.

A Battle of Wills: Napoleon Takes the Papal Lands

The Papal States were annexed by Napoleon in 1809.

Any warmth (if ever there was any) between Napoleon and the pope gradually disappeared as the Coalition Wars raged on. In 1805, retreating French troops reoccupied Ancona. The pope immediately sent a letter to the emperor protesting the French occupation and imploring him to withdraw the troops. Napoleon replied by accusing the pope of allowing Swedish, Sardinian, Russian, and British agents to work freely in the Papal States despite the goodwill he had shown earlier to the Catholic Church. Despite their mutual hostility, both men knew that they owed a lot to each other and that they needed each other. They spent the next two years trying to browbeat each other into submission by exchanging scathing and self-aggrandizing letters.

Napoleon continued to seize lands that belonged to the pope, forcing Pius to retaliate in a passive-aggressive way. To punish the emperor, the pope refused to confirm the appointment of bishops Napoleon nominated. Napoleon responded by sending General Miollis and the French troops to Rome on February 2, 1808. He followed it up by annexing the papal lands (Urbino, Camerino, Ancona, and Macerata) into his dominion in Italy on April 2, 1808.

Not content with his accomplishment, he then decreed the annexation of Rome to his empire on May 17, 1809. With his earthly realm gone, the pope was forced to retreat to the Quirinal Palace and become nothing more than the Catholics’ spiritual leader. In a fit of impotent rage, he issued the papal bull Quum memoranda condemning and excommunicating any person who usurped the pope’s authority. Although the pope did not write his name on the document, Napoleon took the hint and retaliated. He directed his brother-in-law and king of Naples Joachim Murat to arrest the pope in case he tried to instigate a rebellion. He also wrote a letter to General Miollis suggesting that the pope should be locked up.

Despite his master not explicitly ordering the pope’s arrest, the French general Radet and his men went ahead and kidnapped the pope during the early morning hours of July 6, 1809. The Swiss Guards stationed in the Quirinal Palace were soon overpowered by the French forces. The pope was then forced to leave his chambers and surrender to General Radet. The general rued the arrest upon seeing the pope.

Napoleon was quick to distance himself from the kidnapping when news of the events in Rome broke out. This, however, did not mean that he did not capitalize on it. The pope spent the next five years in house arrest in Savona and in Fontainebleau.

References:

Picture by: The Yorck Project (2002) 10.000 Meisterwerke der Malerei (DVD-ROM), distributed by DIRECTMEDIA Publishing GmbH. ISBN: 3936122202.Art Renewal Center – description, Public Domain, Link

Breunig, Charles. The Age of Revolution and Reaction: 1789-1850. New York: Norton, 1977.

Carson, H.M., Peter Toon, and C.T. McIntire. The New International Dictionary of the Christian Church. Edited by J. D. Douglas and Earle E. Cairns. Grand Rapids, MI:

Zondervan Publishing House, 1996.

Hicks, Peter. “Napoleon and the Pope: from the Concordat to the Excommunication.” Napoleon.org. Accessed December 13, 2017. https://www.napoleon.org/en/history-of-the-two-empires/articles/napoleon-and-the-pope-from-the-concordat-to-the-excommunication/.

Walsh, John. The New Cambridge Modern History, Vol. 9: War and Peace in an Age of Upheaval, 1793-1830. Edited by C.W. Crawley. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1965.

Posted on December 21, 2017May 31, 2018 by Kat Cendana — 1 Comment

St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre

Between August 24 and 26, 1572, thousands of Huguenots were massacred in Paris at the instigation of several members of the French royal family and the Duke of Guise. The infamous event fell on the feast day of St. Bartholomew (August 24), several days after the wedding of Henry of Navarre and Margaret of Valois. The St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre ended any hopes of reconciliation between the French Catholics and their Huguenot compatriots during the 16th and 17th centuries. This event is recorded on the Biblical Timeline Chart with World History during that time.

The Reformation in France

In 1517, Martin Luther published his 95 Theses against the sale of indulgences. Unbeknownst to him, this piece of literature would upset the balance of power and set off a series of wars in and out of Germany even after his death.

The Reformation, ignited by Martin Luther’s 95 Theses, eventually found its way into France. During the 1530s, Protestantism spread quickly in France thanks to the efforts of John Calvin. Unfortunately, French Protestants (Huguenots) never found their homeland a hospitable place for their faith. By the mid-1500s, King Henry II officially sanctioned the persecution of Huguenots, a policy that continued under his son, Francis II. The persecution against them only intensified when Huguenots tried to kidnap the young king in Amboise in 1560. The Conspiracy of Amboise failed, and more than a thousand Huguenots were executed in the aftermath.

Under Francis II (and in the shadow of his powerful mother Catherine de Médici), France’s policy concerning the Huguenots seesawed between repression and conciliation. The tides of conflict could not be held back any longer when France finally plunged into its first War of Religion between 1562 and 1563. The war ended in 1563 with the Peace of Amboise, but the hatred between the Catholics and the Huguenots remained. The second War of Religion exploded in 1567 and ended in 1568 with the Treaty of Longjumeau. The ink was not yet dry on the document when the third War of Religion broke out in the same year. This was ended with the Peace of Saint-Germain-en-Laye in 1570, but peace would be a far-fetched dream for the Huguenots.

Two years after the Peace of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France was once again engulfed in another War of Religion. What made this particular war so notorious was the wantonness of destruction unleashed by the rulers of France against the Huguenots of France and those who came from the Kingdom of Navarre.

The Massacre of St. Bartholomew’s Day

The St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre took place in August of 1572.

The Catholics

Catherine de Médici – the Italian queen consort of King Henry II of France. She gave birth to the future King Francis II in 1544, and was soon followed by Elizabeth of Valois (1545), Charles IX (1550), Margaret of Valois (1553), and the Duke of Anjou, Henry III (1558). She occasionally played regent during the reign of her husband Henry II and her son Francis II. She became more powerful after the death of Francis II and the accession of her younger son, Charles IX.

Catherine tried to be conciliatory to the Huguenots during the early years of her rule. After the Surprise of Meaux (1567), the queen launched a repressive campaign against Louis I de Bourbon (the Huguenot Prince de Condé) and his supporters. She allegedly ordered the St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre along with her younger and more ambitious son, Henry, Duke of Anjou, and some French and Italian noblemen.

Charles IX – the younger son of King Henry II and Catherine de Médici. Charles inherited the throne of France when his older brother died Francis II died in 1560. Sickly, mentally unstable, and unfit to rule, he was long overshadowed by his mentor, the Admiral Gaspard de Coligny, and by his own mother. He was said to have ordered the Massacre of St. Bartholomew’s Day with the instigation of his mother.

Margaret of Valois – younger daughter of Henry II and Catherine de Médici. Her wedding with the Huguenot King Henry III of Navarre on August 18, 1572, was tarnished with the massacre of St. Bartholomew’s Day on August 24. She became the Queen of Navarre and France following her brothers’ death and her husband’s accession to the throne of France.

Henry I, Duke of Guise – leader of the Catholic faction at the French court and lover of Margaret of Valois. The duke blamed Coligny for his father’s death in 1563 and sought revenge from his youth. He personally supervised Coligny’s assassination in 1572.

Henry, Duke of Anjou – youngest son of Henry II and Catherine de Médici. Primary instigator of the massacre of St. Bartholomew’s Day.

The Huguenots

Jeanne d’Albret – Queen of Navarre and joint ruler with her husband Antoine de Bourbon. She converted to Calvinism during the mid-1500s and imposed Protestantism in Navarre. She would repeatedly come to a head with Catherine de Médici during the French Wars of Religion. Jeanne finally agreed to make peace with the Catholic faction in 1572 with the betrothal of her son Henry III to the French princess Margaret of Valois. Her death in Paris two months before her son’s wedding was blamed on Catherine de Médici.

Henry III of Navarre (later Henry IV of France) – son and heir of Jeanne d’Albret and Antoine de Bourbon. Catherine de Médici and Henry’s mother Jeanne d’Albret arranged his marriage to the French princess Margaret of Valois in 1572 to reconcile the Catholics and the Huguenots. Henry III was one of the few survivors of the Huguenot massacre on St. Bartholomew’s Day.

Gaspard de Coligny – French admiral and leader of Protestant faction at the French court. He became the Huguenots’ most trusted supporter and protector during the Reformation. Henry I, Duke of Guise, blamed Coligny for the death of his father. Coligny became an influential adviser to the mentally unstable Charles IX, something that Catherine greatly resented. On August 22, 1572, assassins allegedly sent by Catherine de Médici (or Henry, Duke of Guise or even Spain) failed to kill Coligny. The second attempt, however, was supervised by the Duke of Guise himself and resulted in the admiral’s death on St. Bartholomew’s Day (August 24). A massacre of tens of thousands of Huguenots followed the death of Coligny.

Before his death, Coligny had been trying to convince Charles IX to lead the French army in a war against Philip II of Spain to take the Low Countries. Coligny hoped that the war against Spain would finally unite the Huguenots and the Catholics, but the plan encountered fierce resistance from the Duke of Guise.

The Wedding and the Bloodbath

The marriage of Margaret of Valois and Henry III of Navarre was solemnized on August 18, 1572, in Paris. It was the culmination of months of negotiation between the Protestant Queen Jeanne d’Albret and the Catholic Queen Catherine de Médici. King Charles IX of France, his younger brother Henry III, and their mother attended the wedding, along with the Catholic and Huguenot nobility. The marriage of Henry and Margaret was supposed to end the enmity between the Huguenots and Catholics, but what transpired afterward only deepened the hatred between the two factions.

Four days after the wedding, an assassin attempted to kill Gaspard de Coligny as he walked home from the Louvre. He escaped with his life intact, but with his left arm fractured by the shot. His bodyguards were unable to apprehend the assassin, but rumors quickly spread that it was Catherine de Médici who sent the killer.

On St. Bartholomew’s Day (August 24), assassins sent by Catherine and Henry, Duke of Anjou (with permission from Charles IX and the personal supervision of the Duke of Guise) made another attempt at Coligny’s life. They attacked him at home and threw his dead body out of a window afterward. His killing was followed by the massacre of Huguenot noblemen who were staying in the Louvre Palace. Henry of Navarre was detained while the massacre was ongoing. Armed men also roamed the streets of Paris and targeted common Huguenots. The bloodbath continued for three days until Charles IX himself ordered the people to stop the killings.

By August 26, 1572, thousands of dead Huguenots laid on the streets of Paris. The killing frenzy also spread to other provinces, pushing the death toll from anywhere between 2,000 (Catholic writers’ estimate) to 70,000 (Protestant writers’ estimate). Philip II of Spain and Pope Gregory XIII greeted the news of the St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre with joy. Many of Europe’s Catholic and Protestant monarchs, however, were horrified when they heard of the slaughter in France.

Charles IX’s mental health, on the other hand, deteriorated soon after the massacre. There were moments when he rejoiced at the death of the Huguenots, but there were instances when he would be racked by guilt and rave about them. He was not healthy to begin with, but his health continued to decline as the months passed. He died in 1574 at the age of 23 and was succeeded by his younger brother, Henry III, Duke of Anjou.

References:

Picture by:Musée cantonal des Beaux-Arts., Public Domain, Link

Hassall, Arthur. France, Mediaeval and Modern: A History. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1918.

Heritier, Jean. French Wars of Religion: How Important Were Religious Factors. Edited by J.M.H. Salmon. Lexington, MA: D.C. Heath and Company, 1967.

Moran, Patrick Francis. The St. Bartholomew Massacre, 24th August, 1572. Dublin:

Browne and Nolan, 1875.

“St. Bartholomew’s Day (24th August 1572).” Musee Virtuel du Protestantisme. Accessed December 13, 2017. https://www.museeprotestant.org/en/notice/st-bartholomews-day-24th-august-1572/.

Posted on December 21, 2017June 5, 2018 by Kat Cendana — Leave a comment

Kingdom of Kongo 1390-1678

The Kingdom of Kongo was founded by Bantu-speaking peoples in the western portion of central Africa. Established in 1390, the kingdom soon gained supremacy by conquering neighboring states. The rulers of the Kingdom of Kongo were among the earliest African Christian converts after the arrival of Portuguese explorers and missionaries in the late 15th century. The Kongo was also one of the most prolific suppliers of captives to the Portuguese slave trade. Although initially lucrative, the trans-Atlantic slave trade eventually brought the kingdom’s demise. These events are recorded on the Biblical Timeline Poster with World History during that time.

Origin

Bantu-speaking peoples from the Benue River area migrated into the Uele and Bas-Congo (Kongo Central) regions around 1000 BC. They were the first known migrants in the area once occupied by the Kingdom of Kongo. They were followed by waves of Nilotic-speaking migrants from the southern and central regions of Sudan, as well as groups (mainly cattle herders) from East Africa who eventually settled around the Great Lakes area.

These migrants occupied an area that is now within the borders of northern Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic of Congo, and (to a certain extent) southern Gabon. The Bantu-speaking peoples brought with them their knowledge of metallurgy and agriculture. The mighty Congo River and its tributaries run through this fertile area, allowing the new settlers to grow yams, sorghum, millet, oil palms, and vegetables. Their ability in making iron tools allowed them to grow more crops. With an abundance of food, it was not long before their population increased.

As years passed, most of the people who lived in the area spoke a Bantu language called Kikongo. What made the ancient Kongolese society unique was their matrilineal descent system (children inherited their ranks and properties through their mothers). Their simple villages and towns soon turned into mini-states (wene) ruled by chieftains or clan heads.

The Kingdom of Kongo and the Atlantic Slave Trade

The Kingdom of Kongo was a vassal state of the Kingdom of Portugal from 1891 to 1914.

During the 1380s, Lukeni lua Nimi (the king of the Mpemba Kasi wene) and Mpuku a Nsuku (the king of Mbata wene) agreed to form an alliance. Other petty states soon joined this alliance, and by 1390, Lukeni lua Nimi was able to consolidate power to establish the Kingdom of Kongo. He established the kingdom’s capital at Mbanza-Kongo (renamed Sao Salvador by the Portuguese) in present-day Angola. He continued to expand the kingdom by conquering neighboring petty states. Once incorporated into the kingdom, the manikongo (king) would appoint and send governors into the kingdom’s provinces.

The Kongo way of life changed after the arrival of Portuguese explorer Diogo Cao and his sailors in 1482. In 1491, King John II of Portugal sent the first missionary expedition to Kongo led by Dominican and Franciscan priests. These missionaries were accompanied by tradesmen, artisans, soldiers, and several women. They were successful in converting King Nzinga a Nkuwu and a number of his courtiers into Christianity. Nzinga a Nkuwu and his queen were baptized, and later adopted the names Joao I and Eleanor in honor of the Portuguese monarchs.

Nzinga a Mbemba, the governor of the province of Nsundi, seized the throne when King Joao I Nzinga a Nkuwu died in 1506. He was baptized in the same year as the previous king and adopted the name Alfonso I when he took the throne. Portuguese missionaries flocked to Kongo during his reign. The king made Catholicism the state religion and even sent his own son to Rome to study theology. After establishing diplomatic relations with the king of Portugal, he sent Kongolese students to study in Europe. He also encouraged the establishment of Portuguese schools in his kingdom. Portuguese merchants used the island of Sao Tome as their base in trading with the Kingdom of Kongo. The Kongo people traded products such as honey, animal hides, copper, ivory, and raffia cloth for Portuguese guns, cannons, ammunition, and luxury goods. However, it was not long before the Portuguese found a more valuable Kongo commodity to trade: slaves.

Slavery had long been a part of Kongolese society, but it was the Portuguese who took it to new lows. The Portuguese bought or kidnapped thousands of captives from the Kongo, and took them to their base in Sao Tome. The captives would then take the notorious Middle Passage across the Atlantic and would be offloaded in Brazil. By the early 1500s, the business of slavery began to tear the kingdom apart and King Alfonso I pleaded with his Portuguese counterpart to stop the slave trade. The appeal fell on deaf ears as the majority of Portugal’s trade and wealth largely depended on the slave trade and the cheap labor the slaves provided. King Alfonso I attempted to ban the slave trade, but this only angered the Portuguese merchants who then tried to have him assassinated in 1540. The king’s death in 1545 was the beginning of the end of the Kingdom of Kongo.

The kingdom was beset with civil wars during the reign of King Diogo I (1545-1561). The Portuguese took advantage of the situation by intervening in the war and pitting one faction against the other. The kingdom declined further when Jaga warriors from the east attacked Mbanza-Kongo in 1568. King Alvaro I (1566-1587) fled to an island on the Congo River to escape the destruction. He later sent emissaries to the Portuguese stationed in Sao Tome to appeal for their support in driving the Jaga warriors out of the kingdom. The Portuguese sent 600 soldiers to help repulse the Jaga warriors and restore Mbanza-Kongo to Alvaro I.

Alvaro I and the succeeding kings became puppets of the Portuguese thereafter. By the early 17th century, the Portuguese trade shifted to Luanda, leaving the king in Mbanza-Kongo without a dependable source of revenue. The resentment of the Kongo rulers against the Portuguese finally came to a head when a war between the two parties exploded on October 29, 1665. The Kongo king Antonio I died in battle, and the kingdom soon fell apart. By the late 17th century, Mbanza-Kongo (renamed Sao Salvador) was only a shadow of what it once was.

References:

Picture by: published by Jodocus Hondius – Northwestern University Library: African Maps, Public Domain, Link

Appiah, Anthony, and Henry Louis Gates, eds. Encyclopedia of Africa. Vol. 1. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010.

Gondola, Didier. The History of Congo. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2002.

Heywood, Linda M., and John K. Thornton. Central Africans, Atlantic Creoles, and the Foundation of the Americas, 1585-1660. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007.

Posted on December 21, 2017June 8, 2018 by Kat Cendana — Leave a comment

Declaration of the Pope’s Infallibility 1870

Pope Pius IX was elected at the most inopportune and tumultuous point in Italian and European history. Italy was unified as a nation-state in 1861 at the expense of various monarchs and the pope. With the Papal States and his temporal power gone, the pope lashed out at secular rulers, revolutionaries, and liberals as best as he could. In a last-ditch attempt to regain his power, Pope Pius IX summoned leading Catholic theologians to the First Vatican Council held between 1869 and 1870. One of the most crucial decisions of the Council in 1870 was the declaration of the Pope’s infallibility and primacy. This event is recorded on the Biblical Timeline Poster with World History during that time.

The Risorgimento

The discontent and aspirations for Italian national unity finally culminated in a revolution in 1848. Pope Pius IX, ruler of the Papal States, finally gave in to pressure from the revolutionaries and took a step toward liberalism by issuing a constitution for his realm. However, his compromise with the Italian revolutionaries failed, and it ended with the murder of his appointed Minister of the Interior, Pellegrino Rossi. Pius IX was forced to flee to Gaeta but was restored with the help of French troops in 1850.

The revolutions spearheaded by Garibaldi and Mazzini failed, but their call for Italian unification was taken up by the Piedmontese Prime Minister Count di Cavour. A savvy and practical politician, he successfully maneuvered to attain the unification of Sardinia and Lombardy in 1859 under the House of Savoy. The unification was soon followed by the inclusion of Modena, Romagna, Tuscany, and Parma.

When Garibaldi saw these new developments, he immediately worked on liberating the Kingdom of Two Sicilies in the south. Cavour, on the other hand, took what remained of the Papal States (with the exception of Rome), effectively ending the pope’s temporal power. He soon followed it up by taking Naples as well. In 1861, the greater part of Italy was finally united under King Victor Emmanuel II of the House of Savoy. Italy took Venice from Austria in 1866 during the aftermath of the Austro-Prussian War. Finally, in 1870, the Italian troops sent by Cavour drove French troops out of Rome, ending their 20-year occupation of the city since Pius’s restoration. King Victor Emmanuel’s occupied the city and assumed the title “King of Italy.”

Terms

The doctrine of papal infallibility was established during the pontificate of Pope Pius IX.

Papal Infallibility – a dogma of the Roman Catholic Church asserting that the pope, when issuing doctrines on morals and faith ex cathedra, is incapable of committing errors. The Church should follow all doctrines that are spoken ex cathedra.

Ex Cathedra – in the Catholic Church, speaking with authority which stems the pope’s position. Latin for “out of/from the chair” (of St. Peter).

Dogma – divinely revealed doctrine (or set of doctrines) on morals and faith issued and made official by the authorities of the Catholic Church.

Classical (19th Century) Liberalism – an ideology closely associated with the various reform movements in 19th-century Europe. Proponents of classical liberalism desired the abolition of feudal regimes and the reformation of the government and the Roman Catholic Church. They were also vocal advocates of:

* Individual liberty and sovereignty of the people

* Representation in the government (although limited to men with properties only)

* Equality before the law

The Italian proponents of liberalism desired the restriction of the power of the authorities (in the case of the Papal States, the pope and the clerics) and the formation of an elected assembly (the parliament). The passage of a constitution was also a paramount goal for the 19th century Italian liberals.

Nationalism – an ideology inspired by the French Revolution, nurtured in early 19th century Germany, and linked with classical liberalism in its early phases. Nationalism is the ideology that stresses the unity of people who share an ethnicity, language, culture, or history. Early and mid-19th-century Italian nationalists include Giuseppe Grimaldi, Giuseppe Mazzini, and Count di Cavour.

Rationalism – a philosophical movement with roots in the Age of Enlightenment. Philosophers who support the ideas of rationalism assert that reason–not religion or sensory experiences–is the only source of knowledge.

Ultramontanism – a movement within the Roman Catholic Church which sought to revive the power and independence of the pope. It had its roots in the Medieval Age and the Reformation but became more popular after the French Revolution.

Gallicanism – a movement within the Catholic Church with roots in 17th century France. Advocates of Gallicanism rejected the temporal power of the pope and supported the idea of separation of church and state. They wanted the pope to submit to a general council, as well as rejected the notion that papal decrees cannot be reversed or reformed.

The First Vatican Council and the Declaration of the Papal Infallibility

Relations between the Catholic Church and European governments were at an all-time low after the Risorgimento. The loss of the Papal States and the end of his temporal powers only pushed Pope Pius to become more conservative. In 1864, he released the controversial Syllabus of Errors and the encyclicals Quanta Cura to lash out at the liberals and the nationalists.

He also targeted the proponents of rationalism, socialism, communism, naturalism, pantheism, and other ideologies which gained traction in the 19th century. Protestants, members of secret societies, and supporters of the separation of church and state also received his condemnation. The publication of the Syllabus dashed the hopes of liberal Catholics and supporters of Gallicanism for conciliation but was wholeheartedly welcomed by Ultramontanists.

The publication of the Syllabus, however, was only the start for Pope Pius IX who still hoped to recover his temporal power. As early as 1864, he already had plans to convene a General Council in response to the loss of his territories and his temporal power. He confided the plan to several bishops and cardinals, most of whom readily agreed to attend the General Council. Some prelates even secretly suggested to include the issue of papal infallibility to the topics that would be discussed.

On June 29, 1868, the pope issued an apostolic letter entitled Aeterni Patris summoning experts in canon law and theologians to Rome for the First Vatican Council. They were to form five commissions which would discuss topics such as

1. Catholic faith and doctrines

2. Canon laws and discipline

3. Eastern churches and Catholic missions in foreign lands

4. Relations between the Catholic church and European states

5. Religious orders

Most of the bishops who attended the Council were either conservative Italians or members of religious orders which were financially dependent on the pope. It was no wonder that many bishops were all too eager to agree with whatever the pope wanted.

The First Vatican Council (or Twentieth Ecumenical Council) met between December 8, 1869, and July 18, 1870. The debates were heated, and a number of theologians resisted some decrees on the grounds that they were unbiblical. In the end, however, the majority won out. The Council formulated the doctrine of papal infallibility and primacy.

References:

Picture by:http://www.papapionono.it/bgimg/piocolor.jpg, Public Domain, Link

Breunig, Charles. The Age of Revolution and Reaction: 1789-1850. New York: Norton, 1977.

Carson, H.M., Peter Toon, and C.T. McIntire. The New International Dictionary of the Christian Church. Edited by J. D. Douglas and Earle E. Cairns. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996.

Sykes, Norman. The Cambridge Modern History: The Zenith of European Power 1830-70. Edited by J.P.T. Bury. Vol. 10. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1960.

Posted on December 21, 2017June 16, 2018 by Kat Cendana — 1 Comment

The Adoption of the Constitution of the Papal States 1848

In 1848, Pope Pius IX was forced by his disaffected subjects to adopt a constitution for the Papal States and liberalize the enclave’s government. This compromise came about in the midst of the tumult of the Risorgimento and the explosion of revolutions of 1848. This event is recorded on the Bible Timeline with World History during that year.

The 1848 Revolutions

Pope Pius IX was in office when the constitution of the Papal States was adopted in 1848.

After the devastating defeat of Napoleon in 1814, Pope Pius VII was finally released from house arrest in France and was free to return to Rome. The Papal States previously annexed by Napoleon and occupied by French troops were reinstated to the Pope thanks to the Treaty of Paris (1814) and the Congress of Vienna (1815). With Napoleon gone, Italy was once again divided into several independent states and duchies. The Austrian Empire dominated Venice and Lombardy, and to some extent, Tuscany, Lucca, Modena, and Parma. The Kingdom of Two Sicilies, on the other hand, reverted to the House of Bourbon.

Europe enjoyed more than a decade of peace, but old problems eventually resurfaced. Early 19th-century Europe was plagued with bad harvests, bankruptcies, and unemployment. The prices of grain and other foodstuffs rose which inevitably resulted in riots. European monarchs, however, were either downright oppressive or indifferent to their subjects’ plight. By the 1830s, revolutions rooted in liberalism and nationalist aspirations were commonplace in Western and Central Europe. Italy, in particular, was engulfed in uprisings led by revolutionaries Giuseppe Mazzini and Giuseppe Garibaldi.

The Papal States themselves were not spared from the outbreak of revolutions. In 1831, the cardinals elected the deeply conservative and authoritarian Pope Gregory XVI. The Papal States were also steeped in inequality and conservatism–something the pope’s subjects deeply resented. During his reign, Gregory XVI had to face the revolution launched by a group called the Carbonari which forced him to ask the Austrians for help. Austrian troops successfully quashed the rebellion in the same year, but uprisings continued to break out every now and then during his reign.

Gregory XVI died in 1846, and he was succeeded by Pope Pius IX. Early in his reign, he issued amnesty to exiles and prisoners and allowed the Jews in the Papal States the freedom to live outside their ghettos. He also eased the rules on press censorship and reformed his cabinet. He issued other economic and social reforms that hoodwinked his liberal-minded subjects and nationalistic Italians into believing that he was one of them.

1848 Revolutions and the Papal State Constitution

In early 1848, the citizens of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies rose up against King Ferdinand II after hearing about the reforms implemented by Pope Pius IX. The revolt was quickly quelled and barely made the headlines in Europe, but it was soon followed by the February Revolution in France. The Prussians launched their own revolution in March, followed by other German states and the Austrian Empire. Europe was once again engulfed in uprisings.

The revolutions forced some European rulers to implement economic reforms, adopt political liberalism, and allow the promulgation of a constitution. Pope Pius IX was among those who were forced to negotiate a compromise with his subjects. On March 14, 1848, he issued the Papal States’ first constitution entitled Fundamental Stature for the Secular Government of the States of the Church. The pope allowed the formation of a bicameral legislative body. This legislative body was made up by the clerics the pope appointed and by the deputies elected by the citizens. However, it was not enough for his subjects as the pope and his cardinals still retained the right to veto any parliamentary move.

He appointed the reform-minded Pellegrino Rossi as Minister of the Interior. The minister tried to implement liberal reforms, but his efforts mostly fell flat. He was assassinated by Pius’s disgruntled subjects later that year, forcing the pope to seek refuge in Gaeta. With the pope out of the way, the revolutionaries held elections to form a constituent assembly on the 9th of February, 1849. The assembly announced the abolishment of the Papal States and the end of pope’s temporal power. In addition, they declared the creation of the democratic Roman Republic in its stead.

References:

Picture by: Unknown (User:Czinitz at hu.wikipedia) [Public domain or Public domain], from Wikimedia Commons

Breunig, Charles. The Age of Revolution and Reaction: 1789-1850. New York: Norton, 1977.

Carson, H.M., Peter Toon, and C.T. McIntire. The New International Dictionary of the Christian Church. Edited by J. D. Douglas and Earle E. Cairns. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996.

Pouthas, Charles, and D. Mack Smith. The Cambridge Modern History: The Zenith of European Power 1830-70. Edited by J.P.T. Bury. Vol. 10. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1960.